Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1887-03-01
ouRIoslrIEs OF ICE.


Come Peculiar FORMATIONS Recorded at
Various Times and Different Places.
Some years ago, neighbor brought
TO the writer's study a cake of leo
which he had cut from water pail.
Its top was like all such pieces of ice,
but it had horn of ice growing from
it, and turning it over, the under side
showed that the horn was hollow, and
was filled with water when the cake
formed. 1t was brought as a "freak of
nature" but careful examination
showed how the horn was formed The
pail of water stood in a chair near u
stove, while the horn pointed directly
towards small hole in the wall oppo-
site. A current of air had swept across
the pail and so weakened the ice at
that point, and in expanding it had
burst at its weakest point
Ice is a crystal, or better, great
mass of crystals. The little bits of ice
grow together in one definite form,
that of the six-pointed star. A COM
plete crystal is beautiful star But
most crystals are very incomplete, be-
ing broken up, or else several frozen
together into a single mass. The form
of these crystals can be readily seen by
looking at pane of glass on n frosty
morning, or by catching few large
flakes upon fur collar.
NoY, snow crystals are not simply
masses of frozen water-they are much
less solid. They are formed when va
por condenses in the upper regions of
air, much as dew is formed upon the
earth's surface, and they are frozen di-
rectly from the vapor. Many reasons
tend to show that all the light, fleecy
clouds, seen at great heights, consist
of these snow masses still floating in
the air. So if any cold object is placed
before the vapor, a mass of snow forms
upon it. A board before an engines
escape pipe on a cold day soon becomes
grows as long as it continues cold. The
ice often forms long spikes. all pointing
towards the escaping steam and grow
ing towards it. Such masses Of ice
formed upon posts and stones ON top
of Mount Washington, in New Hamp-
shire, some years since, four feet long.
A strong northwest wind was blowing
at the time, and the air was remark
ably damp. Soon after it commenced, !
every object became. coated with ice,
and on all the more prominent points |
il continued to grow for two days.
The beautiful coatings of ice which
cover trees and bushes in the winter |
are formed in nearly the same way.
They come when the bushes and trees |
are cold, while the air is little warm
cr and full of moisture. Then the
branches and twigs quickly coat, the
frost often accommodating until the tree
carries a load of tons. Thousands of
forest and ornamental trees were
broken last spring, in the Eastern
States, by such load Of ice. Though |
called an ice storm. it differed from |
many other storms only in its greater |
severity and longer duration.
Perhaps the greatest curiosity in the
way of ice formation ever known was
the loading of the telegraph wires in |
Siberia, few winters ago. Such an |
ice storm occurred there, and the wires |
were all coated. Then rain followed. |
and long icicles were formed. hanging |
from the wires. Soon the sun came
out and melted the ice on the top of
the wires so that the ice turned around
the wires, making the icicles all point
upwards like the teeth of a comb.
Then the ice again frozc to the wires,
and there it remained for several days,
until finally strong wind shook the
ice of. All these curious forms result |
from different conditions of condonsa-
tion.-LaROy r. Griffin, in Chicago
Current.